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PROVO — A few moments after sixth-seeded BYU's stunning 71-67 loss to Duquesne in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament, Jaxson Robinson caught himself, lamenting how he wished he had another chance to come back to the Cougars.
Then-head coach Mark Pope caught his star shooter, wrapped his arm around Robinson, and jokingly said into the microphone, "We can make that happen right now" — an icebreaker that elicited a few chuckles and possibly gave BYU fans hope of the top scorer returning for his final season of eligibility provided by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Any lingering hope of the reigning Big 12 Sixth Man of the Year returning to BYU became official Tuesday afternoon, though: Robinson is declaring for the NBA draft.
The 6-foot-7 senior from Ada, Oklahoma, who averaged 14.2 points, 2.5 rebounds and 1.3 assists per game in becoming arguably the top reserve in the Big 12 posted the announcement on social media.
He thanked BYU coaches, staff, administrators, professors and fans "who've helped me grow so much as a person" for the former Arkansas and Texas A&M transfer's two seasons in Provo. He also made no mention of entering the NCAA transfer portal.
Thank you God 🙏🏾 pic.twitter.com/wXcIV1DUoh
— JAXSON ROBINSON (@Robinsonjaxx) April 23, 2024
"I will be pursuing my dream and declaring for the 2024 NBA Draft," said Robinson, a communications major who was on track to graduate this weekend. "I am looking forward to this next chapter of my life and what God has in store for me."
Robinson played an integral role as anyone in leading the Cougars to a fifth-place finish in the Big 12 and second NCAA Tournament appearance in four years, leading the team in scoring and anchoring one of the best 3-point shooting teams in the country.
The 42.6% shooter and a 35.4% 3-point marksman started 36 of his 66 games in two seasons with the Cougars, but found his footing as Pope — who went on to coach at his alma mater Kentucky — off the bench.
After starting 30 of 33 games as a junior in 2022-23 for just 8.5 points and 2.9 rebounds per game, Robinson came off the bench in all but six games of his senior campaign when he increased his completion percentage by 40 percentage points for nearly double his scoring output.
He's currently projected as a second-round pick in this summer's NBA draft. The early entry deadline for the draft is Saturday, with an underclassman withdrawal date of May 29 for any declared athlete who has not signed with an agent to return to NCAA play.
The NBA's early entry withdrawal deadline is June 16, or 10 days before the 2024 NBA draft.
